Creating a Balance

For maintaining a healthy life it’s very important to eat all the correct nutrients and in the right proportion. With the correct guidance and knowledge it becomes very easy to deal with all the complex body issues. High blood pressure, high cholesterol levels, diabetes, obesity is being observed as the most common disorders among people and it’s all because of their unhealthy eating habits. Night-time noshing, endless snacking, eating more processed foods, skipping breakfasts are some of the few unhealthy eating habits that not only cause weight gain but also affect your mental health, cautions dietician Nmami Agarwal, who has been associated with former cricketer Gautam Gambhir’s nutrition among others.

In her words, “Your body is like a specially crafted multi-functioning entity that needs the right fuel in the form of food to ensure vitality, longevity and health. There is a direct relationship between what you feed yourself with and the outcome that is derived by your body- both on the inside and outside.”

Nmami is the founder of a nutrition and wellness organization - Nmami Life. A nutritionist by profession, she did her specialization in Nutrition and Dietetics from Symbiosis Institute of Health Sciences.

She has dealt with many clients from all around the country and has also been actively associated with Gautam Gambhir and Michael Clarke for Sports Nutrition, Manushi Chhillar and Ambika Anand for Lifestyle-based nutrition for women, apart from many celebrities. When asked about the trending diets being followed, she shares her perspective and talks about the benefits of following a perfectly balanced diet that consists of all the basic five food groups.

“When someone comes to me be it a celebrity or not, they come with a mindset of achieving their health goals. So I look into your protein, vitamins, fats, carbohydrates and minerals requirements because when you come to a nutritionist you seek an advice that you can follow for lifelong and a diet that is sustainable. Like for models they are going to pursue their profession for a while and not just for few years and you have to maintain that body type. And there is no specific diet for people as a group, it all depends on each individual’s body type since every body has a different requirement. So like someone who is gluten sensitive I would give them gluten sensitive diet” she says.

The most unhealthy diet is considered to be the liquid diet, “I don’t recommend anyone to go on for a liquid diet even for a day. A liquid diet is a kind of diet that mostly consists of liquids in the form of juices, shakes or soft foods in molten or semi-solid consistency. This type of diets can also involve detox drinks, meal replacements or weight loss shakes. You cannot just drink everything, you need fats, proteins and carbohydrates to function. It is recommended only to cleanse your system and that too for three days maximum and don’t make it a habit like once a week or every third day you are doing it. People can loose out on their vitamins and this might invite health problems like weakness, hair growth problems, acne” she adds. The most favorable and healthy diet is Mediterranean diet that can be followed by most of the body types, “ It is a very balanced diet, a person following Mediterranean diet should avoid refined and processed foods like sugary beverages, sugar, refined oils, refined grains and consume a lot of fruits, nuts vegetables, seeds, herbs, spices, whole grains and seafood. This diet has no disadvantages since it includes all the basic five groups and it won’t harm you until you overdo things.

A person has to eat in moderation, in controlled proportions. Even for people with high cholesterol, they just need to avoid fats otherwise can follow this diet. Similarly, people with diabetes following this diet should cut down on protein.” concludes  Nmami.